# Notability vs Freenotes®

Notability and Freenotes® both sit at 4.8 stars, but that hides the real split: 60% of Freenotes®'s written reviews are positive against 37% of Notability's. Freenotes® also leads on iOS requirement (15.5 vs 17.5). Notability's advantage is chart position (#80 vs unranked) and ratings volume (457K vs 61K). On price, rating, update cadence and ads there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Notability sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per month and Freenotes® sells 18 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per 7 days. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.8 for Notability against 4.7 for Freenotes®. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Notability has 457K ratings behind it against 61K, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 37% of Notability's written reviews are positive against 60% of Freenotes®'s.

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly weekly. Both last shipped on September 25, 2026.

## The numbers

| Metric | Notability | Freenotes® |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.8 (457K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/notability-ai-notes-and-planner/id360593530/reviews)** | [4.7 (61K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/freenotes-ai-notes-taking/id6464237904/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **457K** | 61K |
| Positive reviews | 36.5% of reviews | **59.5% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Weekly | Weekly |
| Monetization | Freemium | Free with in-app purchases |
| Best chart rank | **#80** | — |
| Size | 411 MB | 704 MB |
| Requires iOS | 17.5 | **15.5** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Mac | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Ginger Labs](https://appshunter.io/developer/318126112) | [Free Notes AI Note Taker LTD](https://appshunter.io/developer/6775767870) |

## What reviewers say

### Notability

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/notability-ai-notes-and-planner/id360593530)

**Currently charting:** #80 Top Grossing · Productivity, #127 Top Free · Productivity (US App Store)

Capture, organize, and enhance your thoughts with a versatile digital notebook. Seamlessly blend handwriting, typing, and multimedia to annotate documents, record lectures, and generate summaries. Ideal for students and professionals seeking to boost productivity and learning.

**Highlights:** Handwritten and typed notes, PDF and document annotation, Audio recording and transcription, AI-powered summaries and quizzes, Customizable organization, Cross-device sync

**Features:** Family Sharing, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (10)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Notability Lite | $5.99 | per month |
| Notability Plus | $7.99 | per month |
| Notability Plus | $12.99 | per 3 months |
| Notability Lite | $14.99 | per year |
| Notability Plus | $19.99 | per year |
| Notability Plus | $19.99 | per year |
| Notability Pro | $19.99 | per month |
| Notability Plus | $29.99 | per year |
| Notability Pro | $99.99 | per year |
| Notability Classic | $49.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Great app for note-taking
- 👍 Smooth handwriting experience
- 📝 Excellent organization and file management
- 🎙️ Useful audio recording feature
- 🔍 Handwriting recognition and search

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Sync issues with iCloud
- 🔍 Limited search and organization options
- 🖍️ Frustrating highlighter behavior
- 🔒 Concerns about subscription model
- 🔧 Buggy after recent updates

**Reported bugs**

- Notes disappearing or getting corrupted
- Frequent crashes and performance issues
- Palm rejection problems after updates
- Inconsistent behavior when importing files

**Requested features**

- Improved folder/hierarchy organization
- More shape recognition and drawing tools
- Side-by-side viewing of multiple notes
- Ability to edit/rename audio recordings
- Better integration with other apps and services


### Freenotes®

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/freenotes-ai-notes-taking/id6464237904)

This AI-powered digital notepad transforms your device into an intelligent workspace. It offers handwriting recognition, PDF annotation, and AI assistance for summarizing documents, answering questions, and aiding in study. Organize notes, sketch ideas, and sync across devices for a seamless paperless experience.

**Highlights:** AI Summaries and Chat with PDFs, AI Homework and Study Helper, Handwritten Note Organization, OCR Search and PDF Annotation, Infinite Canvas and Shape Recognition, Active Recall Tape and Flashcards, Picture-in-Picture Video Note-Taking

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (18)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Freenotes Weekly Plus Member | $1.99 | per 7 days |
| Freenotes Weekly Pro Member | $6.99 | per 7 days |
| Premium Freenotes AI Weekly | $6.99 | per 7 days |
| Freenotes Yearly Plus Member | $9.99 | per year |
| Freenotes Yearly Plus Member | $9.99 | per year |
| Monthly Pro Member Promotion | $19.99 | per month |
| Freenotes Monthly Pro Member | $19.99 | per month |
| Premium Freenotes AI Monthly | $19.99 | per month |
| Freenotes Yearly Pro Member | $39.99 | per year |
| Yearly Pro Member Discount | $39.99 | per year |
| Freenotes Yearly Pro Member | $39.99 | per year |
| Marketplace Content | $1.99 | one-time |
| Marketplace Content | $2.99 | one-time |
| Marketplace Content | $3.99 | one-time |
| Marketplace Content | $9.99 | one-time |
| Marketplace Content | $10.99 | one-time |
| Freenotes Remove Ads | $29.99 | one-time |
| Freenotes Plus Member Lifetime | $29.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Completely free app with no ads or in-app purchases
- 👍 Intuitive and user-friendly interface
- 📚 Comprehensive note-taking features (layers, templates, stickers, etc.)
- 🎨 Highly customizable (colors, fonts, covers, etc.)
- 🗂️ Excellent organization tools (folders, notebooks, etc.)

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Occasional issues with syncing and iCloud backup
- 🖌️ Limited customization options for pen/pencil settings
- 🔍 Lack of handwriting recognition and search
- 🔗 No support for external links or clickable content
- 🔀 Difficulty in rearranging or splitting notebooks

**Reported bugs**

- Occasional freezing or lagging when writing/drawing
- Issues with the shape recognition tool not working as expected
- Problems with the eraser tool not functioning properly

**Requested features**

- Add handwriting recognition and search functionality
- Improve iCloud sync and backup capabilities
- Expand pen/pencil customization options
- Implement support for external links and clickable content
- Introduce features for easier notebook organization and splitting


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Notability free?

Notability is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Freenotes® free?

Freenotes® is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Notability or Freenotes®?

Notability is rated higher. Notability averages 4.8 out of 5 from 457K ratings, while Freenotes® averages 4.7 from 61K ratings.

### Do Notability or Freenotes® have ads?

Neither Notability nor Freenotes® shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Notability or Freenotes®?

Notability ships an update weekly, and Freenotes® weekly. Most recently, Notability was updated on September 25, 2026 and Freenotes® on September 25, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*